The Salted Fish Landlord and His Asura Field

Stepping into the perimeter of Paradise Valley, the irritating clamor of the outside world was instantly cut off.

Li Hao exhaled a long, stale breath, his entire body relaxing until he practically collapsed onto the green grass by the lake.

It was too exhausting.

Dealing with people was truly more tiring than fighting a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

Especially dealing with a little devil like Ning Rongrong, who was both overly familiar and difficult to handle.

"Daddy!"

A petite figure, accompanied by a gust of fragrance, flew quickly into his arms.

It was Xiao Wu.

Her little face was etched with anxiety as she clutched Li Hao's arm tightly, looking him up and down with concern.

"Where did you go? Are you hurt?"

"That stinky girl, she didn't bully you, did she?"

The "stinky girl" she referred to was, naturally, the girl in the pink dress who had tried to pester Li Hao on the outskirts of the Star Dou Forest earlier.

Although she had only sensed her from afar, Xiao Wu's intuition told her that the human girl was no good.

Li Hao hadn't even had a chance to answer.

The temperature of the air, however, suddenly dropped by several degrees.

"Hmph."

A very soft, yet cold snort filled with queenly disdain came from the side.

The figure of Medusa appeared silently, her emerald snake-like eyes casting a meaningful glance in the direction of Zhu Zhuqing.

The implication was obvious.

See? Another one has arrived; you'd better keep a close eye on your master.

Zhu Zhuqing did not make a sound.

But she, who had originally been standing three steps away from Li Hao's side, subconsciously shifted half a step forward.

It was that half-step of distance that brought her closer to Li Hao.

It was a silent declaration of territory, characteristic of a feline.

Li Hao, who had only just escaped from social hell, instantly felt his back start to chill again.

This subtle atmosphere...

Why was it starting again?

His social anxiety radar let out another piercing alarm.

"Ahem!"

Li Hao jolted, quickly sitting up from the grass and attempting to divert this dangerous topic.

He rubbed Xiao Wu's head, forcing an exaggerated smile onto his face.

"Our Xiao Wu is the best; you've watched over the house so well, you deserve a reward!"

As he spoke, he scrambled to pull a bag of maltose he had picked up in a town outside from his storage Soul Tool.

This was a strategic supply he had prepared specifically for such emergencies.

"Wow! Candy!"

Xiao Wu's attention was immediately captured, as expected. She happily took the candy, peeled one open, and popped it into her mouth, her little face squinting in bliss.

A harem war that was about to erupt seemed to have been forcibly suppressed by a single piece of candy.

Li Hao let out a long sigh of relief.

Being a landlord was just too hard.

However, the peace he assumed was merely a brief lull before the storm.

Ever since the Ning Rongrong incident, the daily life in the Soul Beast Paradise had quietly undergone some changes.

A strange, silent pattern of vying for favor had formed among the three Soul Beast Girl.

For instance, when Li Hao finished a day of being a couch potato and lay on the lounge chair by the lake for a nap.

Xiao Wu would be the first to run over, diligently raising her little fists.

"Daddy, let me massage your back! My Soft Bone Rabbit massage technique is super comfortable!"

No sooner had her voice fallen.

A cup of warm water, at the perfect temperature and floating with a few leaves of Clear Heart Grass, would be held to Li Hao's lips by a fair hand.

Medusa had appeared beside him at some point, her movements elegant and her demeanor haughty.

"Drink."

She said only one word, yet it carried an irresistible, queenly aura.

Just as Li Hao felt his scalp tingle from being caught in this pincer movement.

He discovered that the lounge chair beneath him had been replaced, at some unknown point, by a softer, more comfortable fur-covered daybed.

Beside it, a small, vine-woven canopy had been added to provide shade from the sun.

In the shadows not far away, the figure of Zhu Zhuqing flashed by, hiding her merit and fame.

She never spoke, yet she always proved her presence through the most practical of actions.

Caught in the middle, Li Hao often felt a wave of awkwardness and a headache.

For someone with social anxiety, the greatest fear is becoming the center of attention.

And now, he had to struggle to survive every day under three gazes with an overwhelming sense of presence.

But...

This feeling, it didn't seem so bad?

To be cared for, to be looked after, to be needed.

This sweet burden, filled with the scent of daily life, allowed his long-isolated heart to gradually feel the warmth known as "home."

Wasn't this exactly the kind of easygoing, lazy life he had always wanted, accompanied by family?

Although the process was a little more stimulating.

In this strange atmosphere, every day in Paradise passed in a fulfilling and peaceful manner.

The strength of the three Soul Beast Girl companions was also steadily improving under the near-cheating, superior environment of Paradise.

From time to time, Li Hao would use the [Reverse Empowerment] ability of his Martial Soul to nourish their bodies and souls with the pure soul power he had fished up.

Xiao Wu's Soft Bone Rabbit bloodline became increasingly pure; when she ran, her long legs moved so fast that one could barely see a blur.

After adapting to the rules of the Douluo Continent, Medusa's soul and body achieved a higher degree of fusion, and the pressure belonging to a Dou Emperor began to truly settle in.

Zhu Zhuqing's progress was the most obvious.

Her [Nether Spirit Cat Royal Bloodline] was already top-tier, and under the nourishment of Paradise and Li Hao's empowerment, it had begun to evolve toward that of a true "Royal."

With her assistance, Li Hao further perfected the Nether ecological zone within Paradise.

The shadows in that area became deeper, even attracting some harmless, external Nether-attribute soul beasts, such as Shadow-Devouring Butterfly and Nightmare Beast cubs, to come and settle down.

Paradise was becoming increasingly diverse and full of vitality.

And Li Hao himself, due to the bond of [Ability Sharing], found his soul power consolidated to an incredibly solid state without even realizing it, leaving him only one step away from the thirty-level bottleneck.

This evening.

Li Hao sat by the lake all alone.

He took out the White Jade Pendant that Ning Rongrong had accidentally dropped from his pocket.

The jade was warm and smooth, cool to the touch, and carved with an exquisite seven-story pagoda—the very symbol of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

A faint soul power imprint, belonging to a top-tier support-type Martial Soul, flowed quietly across the jade.

This thing was a hot potato.

But at the same time, it was an opportunity to establish contact with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

A potential karma had already been quietly buried.

Li Hao rubbed the jade pendant, but ultimately shook his head and tucked it away again.

Forget it.

Future matters can wait for the future.

If he could avoid trouble, he would try his best to do so.

He cast aside his distracting thoughts, closed his eyes, and prepared to enter a state of meditation to properly organize the soul power he had recently gained.

In the valley, the evening breeze blew gently, and the insects chirped in waves.

Everything was as peaceful as a painting.

However.

The very moment his mind sank into his sea of energy and connected with his Martial Soul.

Hum—!

The [Karma Fishing Rod], which he treated as the core of his Martial Soul, transmitted an unprecedented, violent craving and tremor without any warning!

This tremor was far more intense and urgent than when he had sensed Ning Rongrong before!

It was not crying for help.

It was... summoning!

A summons originating from the bloodline, from destiny, and impossible to resist!

In the dark, unseen void.

Li Hao's consciousness was pulled by an invisible force.

Before his eyes, there was no longer a tranquil valley.

A phantom of a plant, illusory yet incredibly real, slowly bloomed within his perceived world.

It was a strange immortal herb.

The flower had nine petals, its colors gorgeous, and its extreme fragrance seemed capable of piercing through the soul.